Yesterday, I was interviewed on #BBCWorldNews, discussing the disproportionate impact of #COVD19 on Black Americans. A thread. /0

Anyone can get it, anyone can die from it. But it is not the ‘great equalizer’ or the ‘great leveller’. /1

We are not all vulnerable, we are not all pregnant, we are not all over 70, and we do not all have underlying health conditions. /2

But what else? Who has a spare bedroom? Who is a frontline key worker? Who has space to store a weekly shop? Who has reliable WiFi? /3

Who has precarious employment? Who has a back garden or green space? Who is exposed to more air pollution? Who has fair access to healthcare and can manage existing health problems? /4

COVID-19 lays bare deep chasms in society, one’s that shape our health and life expectancy. The ability to effectively adhere to the measures needed to halt this virus are a luxury afforded to a privileged few. /5

The burden of this virus is disproportionately falling on those already marginalised, magnifying existing inequalities which will have a far longer reach than an indefinite lockdown. /6

Systemic social and economic inequality, systemic racism, is a root cause of the higher prevalence of COVID-19 amongst minority ethnic groups. It is not their race. It is not their ethnicity. /7

Ethnic and racial inequalities in health are rooted in social and economic inequality. We must recognise this in our public health / social responses to the immediate and long-term impact of COVID-19. /8

We must recognise this in the language we use to discuss rates of infection and rates of mortality in different groups. /9

This is a racial justice issue. This is a social justice issue. Inequality kills. Close the gap. /10